Dayton, Trotwood school-based health centers get $500k

Dayton-based Five Rivers Health Centers, said today that it was awarded a $500,000 grant from Paramount Advantage, a Mediciad insurance plan privately managed by Toledo-based ProMedica. From left, Gina McFarlane-El, CEO, Five Rivers Health Centers; Marlon Howard, Acting Superintendent, Trotwood Madison Schools; Janice Allen, Treasurer, Trotwood Madison Schools; and Tim Petee, Director-Regional Operations, Paramount Healthcare.

Dayton-based Five Rivers Health Centers, said today that it was awarded a $500,000 grant from Paramount Advantage, a Mediciad insurance plan privately managed by Toledo-based ProMedica. From left, Gina McFarlane-El, CEO, Five Rivers Health Centers; Marlon Howard, Acting Superintendent, Trotwood Madison Schools; Janice Allen, Treasurer, Trotwood Madison Schools; and Tim Petee, Director-Regional Operations, Paramount Healthcare.

An insurance company donated $500,000 toward soon-to-open school health centers in Trotwood and Dayton.

Dayton-based Five Rivers Health Centers is partnering with Trotwood-Madison Schools and Dayton Public Schools to operate the school based health centers that will have medical, behavioral health, dental and vision services for the students, families, staff and community in each school districts.

The health centers are anticipated to be open late fall of 2019.

MORE: Asthma program helps keep Dayton kids in classroom

Dayton-based Five Rivers Health Centers said that it was awarded a $500,000 grant from Paramount Advantage, a Medicaid insurance plan privately managed by Toledo-based ProMedica.

“The Paramount Advantage grant will provide significant funding for the two school based health centers we are opening this fall in Trotwood and Dayton,” said Gina McFarlane-El, CEO of Five Rivers Health Centers.

Five Rivers Health Centers is a federally-qualified health center, which serves a high share of Medicaid and uninsured patients.

MORE: Dayton Public, Five Rivers to open first in-school health center

The Dayton Daily News previously reported about Five Rivers’ plans to open the school-based health centers, which can help students by addressing health issues that can get in the way of learning and attending class.

The Dayton health center is opening in the new Roosevelt Elementary PreK-6, formed by the merger of Wonder PreK-6 school and Dayton Boys Preparatory Academy. In Trotwood, the center will be housed in the central office building at 3594 North Snyder Road.

Community Health Centers of Greater Dayton, a different federally-qualified health center, also operates a mobile health unit that brings asthma care to different Dayton Public Schools.

The Paramount Advantage’s future is uncertain, with its parent company ProMedica considering whether to shut the Medicaid plan down after recent financial losses. ProMedica said in a statement that the grant was from the Paramount Foundation, which is where the not-for-profit transfers the insurer’s annual profit to. In this instance, the annual profits that funded the grant were from 2017 and prior, according to ProMedica.

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